EU leaders have re-elected Donald Tusk as president of the European Council despite a bid to oust him by his home country, Poland.
Sources say the leaders voted 27 to one to give him another two-and-a-half-year term.
The Polish government insisted Mr Tusk, a former PM from a rival party, had violated his mandate by interfering in domestic politics.
Mr Tusk is expected to play a major role in the UK’s Brexit negotiations.
After his re-election he tweeted: “Grateful for trust & positive assessment by #EUCO [European Council]. I will do my best to make the EU better.”
Polish Prime Minister Beata Szydlo had strongly opposed Mr Tusk’s candidacy and proposed another candidate, a little-known Polish MEP called Jacek Saryusz-Wolski.
She said after the vote that Mr Tusk’s reappointment signalled that EU leaders would have little say in Brussels.
Source: bbc.com